Hair roller with deflectable teeth



Oct. 4, 1966 L. E. THATCHER HAIR ROLLER WITH DEFLECTABLE TEETH Filed Nov. 1963 INVENTOR. LEWIS E. THATCHER United States Patent 3,276,456 HAIR ROLLER WITH DEFLECTABLE TEETH Lewis E. Thatcher, Chicago, lll., assignor to Gaylord Products, Incorporated, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware Filed Nov. 6, 1963, Ser. No. 321,830 Claims. (Cl. 13240) This invention relates to hair rollers, and more particularly to a one-piece plastic curler for winding and maintaining the hair in the 'form of a curl.

Many of the hair curlers in use today employ protruding teeth on the face of a roller, or combine a brush therewith, to facilitate winding of the hair, and although they have proved useful for this purpose, still the protruding teeth or brush bristles present a problem in that they are uncomfortable when pressed close to the scalp or when sleeping on them. The present invention contemplates a novel hair roller particularly designed to overcome these objectionable features.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a one-piece plastic hair roller employing a lattice of circular sections integrally joined with longitudinally extending ribs to form a relatively firm tubular member, and providing a plurality of flexible toothed segments in association with the ribs and circular sections which will be deflected into the body of the roller when pressure is exerted thereon.

Another object of this invention is to provide a hair roller with toothed members of suflicient rigidity to hold and guide the hair while it is being rolled in the form of a curl, but of sufllcient flexibility that they will deflect into the interior of the roller when the .latter contacts the scalp or face in setting a curl.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a simple, inexpensive, readily manufactured lightweight hair roller which will not interfere with the comfort of the wearer while forming a curl.

This invention embodies other novel features, details of construction and arrangement of parts which are hereinafter set forth in the specification and claims and illustrated in the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a one-piece hair roller embodying features of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged top sectional view of one end of the roller shown in FIG. 1 (both ends being identical) particularly illustrating one of the flexible toothed segment-s engaged in the roller.

FIG. 3 is a transverse sectional view taken along line 33 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary side view of one of the toothed segments of the roller shown both in its normal position and in deflected position by means of dotted lines.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a modified form of this invention.

Referring to the drawings, and particularly FIGS. 1 through 4, reference numeral indicates generally a hair roller comprising a unitary body molded in one piece from a synthetic resinous plastic material, such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, or the like. Roller 10 is in the form of an elongated cylindrical body comprising four longitudinally extending ribs of equal length, indicated generally by the numeral 11, in spaced parallel relation equidistant from each other. The ribs 11 are integrally joined at their extremities to circumferentially continuous end rings 12 and 13, and intermediate their length to two identical shaped rings 14 and 15, the latter of which are in spaced parallel relation equidistantly to each other and to the end rings 12 and 13. As will be apparent from FIG. 1, the longitudinally extending ribs 11 in association with the rings 12, 13, 14 and 15 genice erally defines a hollow cylindrical body and a plurality of substantially rectangular-shaped sections or openings 16 for the reception of a toothed segment 17, as hereinafter described.

The structure and arrangement of segment 17 is iden tical within each section 16, and it is best illustrated in FIG. 2 of the drawings. Segment 17 is hexagonally shaped and it is bisected by a longitudinally extending support member 18 which divides same into two identical sections straddling same. The extremities of support member 18 are integrally joined with rings 13 and 15 at right angles thereto to centrally dispose segment 17 within section 16. A pair of bars 19 are centrally disposed on each side of support 18 in parallel relation thereto a spaced distance therefrom, and are integrally connected to support 18 at its point of juncture with rings 13 and 15 by means of diagonally extending arcuate members 21). Laterally disposed braces 21 connect support 18 and bars 19 centrally thereof to afford rigidity and firmness to the bar. A row of teeth 22 is provided on each bar 19 which projects outwardly from the surface thereof a slight distance beyond the surface of ribs 11 and periphery of rings 13 and 15. Segment 17 is arcuate-shaped in such manner that it normally lies in the peripheral plane of the cylindrical body.

When segment 17 is disposed within section 16 in the manner above described, the bars 19 will extend parallel to the sides of ribs 11 and spaced therefrom sufficient to permit free movement of the bars with respect to the ribs, so that the bars will be deflected from their normal plane to within the confines of the cylindrical body when pressure is exerted thereon, as illustrated in dotted lines in FIGS. 3 and 4 of the drawings. The bars are deflectable in this manner in view of the flexible nature of the plastic material from which they are molded.

The interlocking of the longitudinally extending ribs with the transverse rings provides a relatively firm cylindrical body on which to form a curl. In operation, a tress of hair is engaged with the teeth 22 which, in their normal position, extend slightly above the periphery of the roller. The teeth will hold the hair in. a firm manner during rolling thereof on the head, and upon completion of the curl the bars 19 and protruding teeth 22 which come in contact with the head will be deflected into the interior of the roller by the pressure of the head bearing thereagainst. A bobby pin, or other clamping device, may then be attached to the curl and roller to hold them in a set position. It will be apparent that the roller of this invention provides a firm cylindrical body for the formation of a curl together with teeth to hold the hair in a firm and even manner, while at the same time providing means for deflecting the teeth away from the scalp to prevent irritation and discomfort thereto.

The hair roller described above is approximately 2% inches in length and approximately one inch in diameter, with a space of approximately .0375 of an inch between the edge of ribs 11 and the remote edge of bars 19 to permit clearance of the latter when they are deflected from their normally erect position. However, these dirnensions are not critical as it is contemplated that additional sections 16 and segments 17 may be incorporated to form a larger roller, or that the roller may comprise only two rings, and that the diameter of the roller may vary within the concept of this invention.

Referring now to FIG. 5, a modified hair roller 23 is depicted, which is molded as a unitary body in one piece from the same type of material as utilized for the above described roller 10. The roller is in the form of an elongated cylindrical body comprising four longitudinally extending ribs 24, of equal length, spaced parallel and equidistant from each other and joined at their extremities with end rings 25 and 26. A pair of similar rings 27 and 1) 28 are provided centrally of the roller, in the same peripheral plane with rings 25 and 26, and are integrally joined with ribs 24.

It will be apparent that the structure of roller 23 defines eight sections which are of substantially rectangular shape, generally designated by the numeral 29. Since the structure within each section 29 is identical, the following description of one of the structures applies to each of the other sections.

A pair of webs 30 and 6-1 define rib 24 and extend in spaced parallel relation thereto and to each other, being joined at their extremities with integral rings 26 and 28. tRib 24 is provided with an integral laterally extending toothed segment '32 disposed centrally thereof with the remote edge thereof extending in peripheral plane parallel relationship with web 30 a slight distance inwardly therefrom. A row of teeth 33 are provided on the remote edge of segment 32 which project outwardly from its surface a slight distance beyond the surface of web 30. Segment 32 is arcuate-shaped in such manner that it normally lies in the peripheral plane of the cylindrical body. A series of substantially square openings 34 are provided in the body of segment 32 to lend resiliency thereto as well as afford ventilation when a curl is set thereon. It will be noted that segment 32 is connected with the body of the roller only through the medium of rib 24 and, due to the resilient nature of the latter, the segment is readily deflectable from its normally erect position to a position within the confines of the cylindrical body when pressure is exerted thereon.

The operation of toothed segment 32 is substantially the same as that described above for segment 17 of roller 10. When a tress of hair is engaged with teeth 33 and a curl is wound next to the head, the scalp will exert pressure on the teeth adjacent thereto and deflect them into the confines of the cylindrical body where they will not cause discomfort to the scalp. At the same time the teeth of the segments on which no pressure is exerted will remain erect and continue to engage the hair and hold the curl in a set position.

While I have shown and described what -I regard to be the preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be appreciated that various changes, rearrangements and modifications may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention, as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A hair curler composed of flexible plastic material comprising end rings, a plurality of longitudinally extending ribs in spaced parallel relation to each other joining said end rings and generally defining therewith a hollow cylindrical body, and toothed segments disposed parallel to .and spaced from said ribs and integrally connected thereto by resilient flexible hinge means, and normally lying in the peripheral plane of said cylindrical body and deflectable under pressure from said plane to within the confines of said cylindrical body.

2. A hair curler composed of flexible plastic material comprising end rings, intermediate rings in plane parallel relationship to said end rings, a plurality of longitudinally extending ribs in spaced parallel relation to each other joining said end rings and intermediate rings and generally defining therewith a hollow cylindrical body, and toothed segments disposed parallel to and spaced from said ribs and integrally connected thereto by resilient flexible hinge means, and normally lying in the peripheral plane of said cylindrical body and deflectable under pressure from said plane to within the confines of said cylindrical body.

3. A hair curler composed of flexible plastic material comprising end rings, a plurality of longitudinally extending ribs in spaced parallel relation to each other joining said end rings and generally defining therewith a hollow cylindrical body, resilient support members disposed between said end rings and joined to same within the confines of said longitudinally extending ribs, and an opposed pair of toothed segments disposed parallel to and spaced from said support members and integrally connected thereto by resilient flexible hinge means, and normally lying in the peripheral plane of said cylindrical body and deflectable under pressure from said plane to within the confines of said cylindrical body.

4. A hair curler composed of fiexible plastic material comprising end rings, a plurality of longitudinally extending ribs in spaced parallel relation to each other joining said end rings and generally defining therewith a hollow cylindrical body, resilient support members disposed between said end rings and joined to same within the confines of said longitudinally extending ribs, and toothed segments spaced from and disposed parallel to and integrally joined to said support members by resilient hinge means, said toothed segments normally lying in the peripheral plane of said cylindrical body and deflectable under pressure from said plane to within the confines of said cylindrical body.

5. A hair curler composed of flexible plastic material comprising end rings, a plurality of longitudinally extending ribs in spaced parallel relation to each other joining said end rings and generally defining therewith a hollow cylindrical body, resilient support members disposed between said end rings and joined to same within the confines of said longitudinally extending ribs, and toothed segments spaced from and disposed parallel to and integrally joined to said support members by resilient hinge means, a row of teeth projecting radially from the surface of said toothed segments, said toothed segments normally lying in the peripheral plane of said cylindrical body and deflectable under pressure from said plane to within the confines of said cylindrical body.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,888,937 6/1959 Weldon 132-33 (RICHARD A. GAUDET, Primary Examiner.

L. W. TRAPzP, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A HAIR CURLER COMPOSED OF FLEXIBLE PLASTIC MATERIAL COMPRISING END RINGS, A PLURALITY OF LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING RIBS IN SPACED PARALLEL RELATION TO EACH OTHER JOINING SAID END RINGS AND GENERALLY DEFINING THEREWITH A HOLLOW CYLINDRICAL BODY, AND TOOTHED SEGMENTS DISPOSED PARALLEL TO AND SPACED FROM SAID RIBS AND INTEGRALLY CONNECTED THERETO BY RESILIENT FLEXIBLE HINGE MEANS, AND NORMALLY LYING IN THE PERIPHERAL PLANE OF SAID CYLINDRICAL BODY AND DEFLECTABLE UNDER PRESSURE FROM SAID PLANE TO WITHIN THE CONFINES OF SAID CYLINDRICAL BODY. 